By Godard Thabani Bvungidzire-On May 13th three MDC-Alliance members Cecilia Chimbiri, Netsai Marowa and legislator for Harare West constituency Joanna Mamombe were allegedly abducted after staging a flash demonstration in Harare.
A myriad of social media inconsistencies from government departments of police, information ministry and presidential department ensued in addition to a furore of what is commonly understood as state sponsored cyber bullies known as varakashi (trolls).
Anti cyber bullying trustee Prosper Muromo commented, “The government is guilty of many cyber offences such as deliberately sanctioning trolls, use of moniker by top government officials which they can conveniently deny and outright inconsistencies between the social media posts and pronouncements in other media.”
In the State owned paper The Herald, National Police Spokes Person Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed the arrest of the trio yet on its twitter handle @PoliceZimbabwe they denied it.
“The ZRP wishes to make it clear that the MDC Alliance members who were involved in an illegal flash demonstration in Warren Park, Harare are not in police custody,” read the tweet.
The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services Nick Mangwana posted a quote “It is a diversionary tactic. A poorly choreographed attempt to throw a curve ball at the system.”
Mangwana later claimed this was not the official government position as he was only quoting a troll. Though the tweet came with a disclaimer it carried with it the government’s attitude towards the abductions as well as human rights relating to its critics.
Press Secretary in the Office of the President, George Charamba under the handle @Jamwanda2 tweeted, “Except for desperation why would a right thinking opposition mount a half hearted, women-led demonstration in an environment where national security structures are on heightened alert because of Covid-19 operations.”
Apart from making the claims that the abductions were staged Charamba goes on to cite the West to be handing the demonstrators as a way of masterminding Zimbabwe’s downfall after its failed biological warfare of the corona virus which he says Zimbabwe has handled well.
Despite his high ranking government position Charamba still tweets under a ghost account a convenient position from which he can deny his compromised content when he has to.
Weighing in on the narrative that the abductions were stage managed are numerous state supported trolls who jest and ridicule opposition members as desperate puppets willing to go to unimaginable lengths for their supper.
The untidiness of the government communications through their social media and the inconsistency of their actions to their self proclaimed new dispensation has been a constant Public Relations nightmare especially to President Mnangagwa’s controversial term of office. .
The terror tactic of abductions has been ZANU PF’s signature since independence with many such as Rashiwe Guzha, Patrick Nabayama and Itai Dzamara abducted and never seen while Tonderai Ndira was only found dead.
During the Gukurahundi genocide mass abductions were carried out with President Mnangagwa being a central figure in the Fifth Brigade’s operations.
The three MDC Alliance ladies were found on May 15th having been raped, beaten and forced to eat human waste among other humiliating and despicable horrors they had to endure, all this putting a further dent on President Mnangagwa’s term in office and already compromised human rights record.